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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. rash — hasty
  6. spell — letters
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. rash — a series
  14. face — to point toward
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spell — magic
  19. face — to confront
  20. bat — the animal
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. face — part of the head
  23. mark — a grade
  24. temple — side of the head

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com